EMPOWER PROSPECTS

ENCOURAGE PROS

EMBRACE PROCESSES

Purpose

A birthday. A calling. And now, a lifestyle.

8:twenty8 strives to produce spiritual, positive and measurable impacts in the lives of current and former underdog athletes
through testimonials, mentorship and trusting in the principle of Romans 8:28 – that all things work together for good to them that love God and called according to HIS purpose.
EmpowerProspects. EncouragePros.EmbraceProcesses.

Empower Prospects

Providing spiritual mentoring for life’s hurdles:
• Being an Underdog
• Christlike Character Development
• League Bound Dreams

Believing they can do
ALL things through CHRIST.

I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.Philippians 4:13

Embrace Processes

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.Romans 8:28

Testimony

PROSPECT YEARS

I, Kenny R. Hampton, born “8-28-83”, grew up in Detroit, MI with a passion for sports and dreams of becoming a professional athlete that began at age 4.
As an all-star left-handed pitcher for Detroit Communication and Media Arts High School, I was named Rookie of the Year, MVP (twice),
and garnered All-District honors as a senior.
My collegiate baseball career started in 2001 with an athletic scholarship to Kentucky State University. After becoming an MLB prospect (1B/CF),
injury forced a switch to football.

Despite never having played the sport at any level, I was determined to make an immediate impact, relying on faith and hard work to quickly move from the bottom of the depth chart to starting wide receiver. In my final season at KSU (Coach Fred T. Farrier), I led the Thorobreds in receiving yards per game and helped my team to a 7-4 record.
More importantly, I earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science.

LEAGUE BOUND

After participating in the Scout Camp Regional and Elite Combines, I was named as a protected
wide receiver by Team Tennessee in theAll-American Football League (AAFL) Inaugural Draft.

When the league was postponed, I spent time in the Arena Football League (AFL), Mahoning Valley Thunder (AF2), and was an alternate for Michael Irvin’s Spike TV series “4th and Long.” After two seasons with the Marion Mayhem (CIFL),
my professional playing career came to a close in 2010.

BEYOND THE GRIDIRON

Years of beating the odds through unrelenting effort and determination turned into a four-year stint with the National Football League as a National Field Director forRegional and Super Regional Combines. I worked closely with many prospective players during local pre-combine training, as well as post-combine to offer guidance. Sharing my story as a former undrafted, Division II, NFL Super Regional combine participant who took football to the professional level inspired many athletes to continue pursuing their dreams.

All the while, I held Information Technology positions with companies such as IBM and AAA Ohio, ultimately becoming Business Development Manager at Thirty-One Gifts and earning Professional Certifications from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business and Columbia University’s School of Professional Studies. I currently live in Columbus, OH, with my wife Ralonda (11 years), our two children, Kennedy Sheree (13) and Kenneth Joseph Richard (6), and our dog Fudge.

Despite finding professional success off the field, I struggled for a time with this new identity and battled feelings of disappointment and loss of my childhood dream. But a passion for helping others to prosper as a servant leader provides me with strength and a sense of purpose; “I’m driven to share the story of my journey so that other former athletes around the world can feel empowered and encouraged to become a “PRO” in other aspects of their lives – and to show that God works things out for the GOOD of those who LOVE HIM.”

Pro Testimonies

– Professional Christian athletes who’ve made an impact on my life, as a Christian athlete –

Michael Redd, Pro Basketball

I believe basketball is the greatest sport in the world! But basketball is not who I am. I value my faith and my family more than basketball. After everything is said and done…after I retire, I want people to say, “He loved God and he represented Christ well.” Read More

Drew Brees, Pro FootballA year later, after an injury, Drew relied on Romans 8:28: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Read More

Trey Burke, Pro Basketball

"I want to go to New York. And I wanted to do that for the Lord. … I wanted to come to New York because I feel like this is a city where I can help a lot of people.” Read More

Jonathan Orr, Pro Football

“My relationship with God is number one, it’s the foundation of my life,” Orr said. Read More

Steph Curry, Pro Basketball"I love that basketball gives me the opportunities to do good things for people and to point them towards the Man who died for our sins on the cross," he wrote in a 2015 Fellowship for Christian Athletes article. "I know I have a place in heaven waiting for me because of Him, and that's something no earthly prize or trophy could ever top." Read More

Clayton Kershaw, Pro Baseball

“It is good to know the Lord gives us a lifetime to work out our identities and sort out who we are in Christ. His calling for our lives will undoubtedly compete with daily struggles of temptation to take an easier path. The battle to maintain a Christ-centered identity is the most worthy fight we will face.” Read More

Devon Scott, Pro Basketball

Inky Johnson, NCAA“In life, some people don’t need you to preach a sermon, they need you to live one.” Read More

Andre Ingram, Pro Basketball

“My prayer time is a lot higher than how many shots I get up and what have you. That’s No. 1 for me in all that I do is my faith. I’m praying before games, I’m even praying during games to myself, and just kind of making sure I’m in line with God, because that’s what carries me through everything.” Read More

Tim Tebow, Pro Football/Baseball

"When you believe that you serve a big God, and when you believe yourself that He has a plan and a purpose for you, you can walk with confidence and go after what He puts on your heart, and you can do it with boldness and courage, and you can go after it not having to listen to the naysaysers," Tebow said. Read More

A.C. Green, Pro Basketball

“I am curious [about sex],” Green told Sports Illustrated in 1997. “But not curious enough to go to the violation point. I figure God created it, so it must be good. But he has created it to take place at a certain point of time—within the confines of marriage. If I’m going to live according to rules God laid out, then there are rules A through Z. There can’t be situational ethics.” Read More

Case Keenum, Pro Football"That's why I became a Christian — being around Christian athletes through FCA," he continued. "I'm not playing for the name on the back of my jersey, I'm playing to glorify God. He's given me talents, and I'm trying to maximize those talents however I can." Read More

Deion Sanders, Pro Football and Baseball“No one had told me that life would be tough going from one team to another one,” Sanders said. “Going from the enemy’s team, being one of his soldiers, to God’s team. That’s a tremendous turnaround.”Read More

Gatekeeper

– Music and books from artists and authors keeping my Faith walk on point –

Ear Gate

So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:17

Resources

– Motivational and Impactful Resources –

Dr. Eric Thomas

Eric Thomas, Ph.D. is a critically acclaimed author, World-renowned speaker, educator, pastor andaudible.comAudie Awards Finalist. ET, as he is better known, has taken the world by storm, with his creative style and high-energy messages. His words continue to impact tens of millions of people in several hundred countries across the planet! Through a significant social media presence and his recent domestic and international tours, “ET, The Hip Hop Preacher” has become a global phenomenon! As CEO of his Consulting Firm, ETA LLC., Eric has led his team through the doors of dozens of reputable organizations and Fortune 500 companies such as General Electric, Quicken Loans, AT&T, Nike, Under Armour, New Balance and UPS. He has also consulted for major Universities and the major sports teams within the MLB, NBA, NFL and MLS.

Eric’s spiritual walk, tenacity and drive are the perfect example of his quote,“When you want to succeed as bad as you want to breathe, then you‘ll be successful.”At a recent business meeting, Eric had the opportunity to learn more ‘Secrets of Success’ from Mr. Warren Buffett. This invitation-only event, broadened his mind and further strengthened his resolve to empower others in their pursuit of greatness. Drawing from his own personal experiences as they relate to homelessness, the absence of his biological father, scholastic struggles, and various other obstacles, ET allows his life to be an “open book” from which radiates dynamic and inspiring messages that relate to many people across all strata.

Athlete Transition Services

ATS provides empowering workshops and 1 on 1 life coaching services to college and professional athletes to assist with their transition to life after sports and to help facilitate their overall growth and development. Their mission is to make a positive and measurable impact in the lives of athletes through empowering programs and services that facilitate their overall growth and development.

“Jonathan delivers a thoughtful and important message on financial literacy with deft, humor, and astute understanding of the issue. His real life examples, as well as the hands-on participation pieces, make it a subject that has staying power with his audience. I recommend him highly to present this topic to student-athlete populations.”

Connect

Follow me on social media. From my personal Facebook, Instagram and Twitter channels, you can follow me as I talk the talk and walk the walk.

Book me as a speaker or host. I’ve been invited to speak on multiple platforms for conferences, churches, sports teams, and nonprofits. If you would like to inquire about booking me as a speaker for an upcoming event, please feel free to email me with your event details.

Need a mentor? I’m passionate about Empowering Prospects, Encouraging Pros and Embracing Processes so if you would like me to mentor your student athlete feel free to connect with me! Have something else in mind outside of what’s mentioned above? Feel free to leave me a message and I’ll be more than happy to connect with you.

Together,
Coach Kenny

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8:twenty8 Mentalities

All Things Work Together
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